I think the reason that The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe has become such an American classic is because so many people are able to understand it. There are many people who hate poetry for the very fact that they say it is far too confusing for them to understand what the author is talking about. Poe, however, seems to write in a way that people feel comfortable reading him. For instance, in The Raven Poe uses a very clear and definite rhyme scheme. Most people expect rhyming when they see a poem. There is something about expecting that next rhyme that keeps the poem flowing and understandable. Not to mention that Poe uses pretty simple language, especially when you compare it to the other readings we have been doing in class. If you were to take the average American they could most likely make some sense of what Poe was trying to talk about in this poem. In addition, Poe does an excellent job of creating a scene in which the reader needs no prior knowledge. There is not a certain time period that this poem makes the most sense in. For this reason The Raven has been able to be successful throughout many decades.
I also think that The Raven has been such a popular poem because for many people they understand what Poe was talking about. I personally believe that the raven represented that darkness in the man's heart. I think that the death of his Lenore caused him to lose a part of himself to the sadness that he felt. I think the raven represents what the man was missing. Not only did it represent that physically, but he reminded the man continually that these feelings would continue and that he would leave, "nevermore". I think many people have a raven in their lives. Perhaps it's not only the ongoing grief of a loved one, but rather the constant reminder that something is missing in your life. The Raven represents dark space in your heart that cannot be filled and cannot be satisfied without the desired object. I think for these reasons that many people have been able to connect with The Raven, making it a huge success.
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Kate,
You make a convincing argument for "The Raven" as the poor man's poem, particularly in your observations about the timeless quality to the poem: "Poe does an excellent job of creating a scene in which the reader needs no prior knowledge. There is not a certain time period that this poem makes the most sense in. For this reason The Raven has been able to be successful throughout many decades."
I wonder if your comments about the simplicity of the language are influenced by the other texts we've been reading, though--maybe in comparison to The Group the language in "The Raven" is easy, but there are a lot of obscure words in there, like "nepenthe"!
Kelly
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